Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Collect ~ O ~ Mania

I LOVE TO COLLECT....THINGS!! Most especially things that remind me of the good things of the past....when life was so simple, so unhurried, so friendly. My favorite things to collect are what I call antiques, but are really just old stuff :) But I also collect things of real beauty.

I used to work in a lovely shop called Collect ~ O ~ Mania. It was here that I learned to "bump" up the quality of the things that I collected. Several times a year, the shop would have the artists of some of the pieces we sold come and have a "signing" event. Disney....Hummell...etc. I was so taken by the beauty of craftsmanship....the talent. Of course, I HAD to have some of the pieces as my own!!! LOL I could very well be referred to as a "collecto-maniac"!!! LOL

I am a grandmother of 10...and I still have my dollhouse and its furniture from when I was a young girl....and books that I was given when I was a baby. I have always been a greeting card collector; I cannot bring myself to throw away any cards that are given to me. It is a connection between me and another person....and I do not want to lose that connection. Does that make sense?? So...I have boxes of cards from years and years....and every so often I love to sit down with a box and look at those cards. Pleasant memories :)

The other day I was thinking about collections and wondered what makes us do it. I know for me it has to do with surrounding myself with things that remind me of the past. A grandmothers apron....a special handkerchief...a grandfathers hat.

My grandmother was such an important part of my life. She lived in a lovely, old 2 story house where I spent a huge part of my childhood. It was a wonderful place that I shall never forget. Her yard was full of flowers. I most especially loved the tiny tea roses that climbed up the side of the house. This is a picture of the house today.....very different looking but still I can look at it and remember how it used to look and the special times I had there. Oh how I loved sitting on that front porch, swinging in the porch swing, talking and laughing with her!!

My home has many, many things that were once in her home. These items always make me feel close to her....a way of staying connected even though she has been gone for over 40 years.

She ran a boarding house for men when I was growing up. That was the way she was able to make money. She provided them a bed, bath, breakfast and dinner. They paid extra if they wanted her to pack them a lunch. I loved the long dining room but I most especially loved the dishes that I would set out on the table before I went to bed....making it ready for breakfast the next morning. And for that reason.....I began to collect the same pattern of dishware that she had.

Grandma was unable to leave her home because of health issues. But she did not do without. The vegetable truck would come by her home 1 or 2 times a week. What fun it was to go to the truck and pick out those awesome veggies!!!! And the milkman delivered to the house......the best bottled chocolate milk I have ever tasted!! She ordered groceries over the phone....and they were delivered to the house by a boy on a bicycle!! The eggs came by way of the egg man...not in cartons, but in large stacks of egg flats. What wonderful times those were!!! WOW...this makes ME sound ancient...LOL However, I am ONLY 60 years old....LOL Times have changed so fast over the years.

Anyway, I was going to tell you about me and my collecting of the same dishes as she had. Those were bought from the Jewel Tea truck that came by the house. If you are too young to know anything about the Jewel Tea Company you can blog it and find out about it. Most everything she had was bought through them. She had the Autumn Leaf Pattern of dinnerware. Now...I own her hutch...and it is filled with the same dishes that she had!!! I just could not bare to have put anything else in that hutch. Today...it looks just like it did when I was growing up. Wonderful!!!!

My daughters are not interested in the dishes and say they will not want them once I am gone. That just makes me sad :( Hopefully, through the years, they will gain an appreciation for things that were part of the past in our family.

I hope you have enjoyed this post. I will be sharing more memories...and more collections with you as time goes on. I would love for you to share with me as well. :)

Loved the reading of your blog. It brought memories back to me of my own grandmother and things she had. If I close my eyes, I can see her house, and if I listen real close, I swear I can almost hear her calling me "Peachy! Peachy!! Time to come in and get cleaned up!" Thanks for sharing your memories of your grandmother........and reminding me of mine.

Wonderful blog...glad I noticed it on your facebook page. Your story reminded me of my china hutch I practically had to beg my husband to buy me. I wanted it because it reminded me of my great grandpa (my very favorite grandfather) who lived in upstate New York, in a cute little cottage on the river. While my china cabinet doesn't look like my grandma and grandpa's older antique one, it reminds me of how my grandma would have her plates displayed in hers...Your beautiful word picture of the time with your grandma reminded me of the times I had with my great grandparents...about the same generation, since I'm in my mid 40's. Unfortunately I don't remember as much about my grandma (she was sick and died earlier than Grandpa Leakey did.) But I'm so glad I stopped by for the lovely reminder of them. Funny thing is, the clearest memory I have of my grandpa is sitting on his lap eating candy in the parlor when everyone was scattered in the other parts of the house. He'd remind me that his favorites were the raspberry hard candies with the soft centers and then he'd eat one and hand me one, I knew his other favorite was the the butterscotch ones (and we'd be sure to have one of those too) and I would tell him I loved the red hot cinnamon hard candies and of course we'd eventually have one of those too, then we'd agree that we liked each other's favorite candies (as if no one else in the world liked our special candies.) Silly little memory, but I remember it because of it being one of those few times where just he and I had time together without others butting in. I didn't have to fight to get his attention and I felt like his very special grand-daughter. Thanks so much for sharing your memories and for rekindling mine. With Much Love, Kat

About Me

I am married to the forever love of my life, Gary. We have 2 grown daughters, Denise and Stephanie. Our absolute joys are our 10 grandchildren. I love God immensely...I love my family and dear friends. I appreciate where I am in life right now...and am looking forward to the good things that are still to come....WELCOME to my page..*HUGS*